Socially Conscious Rap

RELEASE OF THE WEEK - WHAT'S NEW IN MUSIC

May 01, 2008

DIZZEE RASCAL

Maths + English

XL/Def Jux

THE ROOTS

Rising Down

Def Jam

One of best things about Dizzee Rascal's first two records was that the English rapper sounded nothing like his American counterparts. With slashing electro beats and social commentary delivered in a thick cockney accent, Rascal (born Dylan Mills) offered a fresh alternative to the moribund gangsta fantasies ruling the domestic scene.

Alas, he gives in to cross-pollination on his third album. Long delayed in the U.S., "Maths + English" features rap mooks Bun B and Pimp C questioning a would-be rival's street cred with a series of ridiculous taunts and boasts that make "Scarface" look understated. It's an unfortunate demerit against an album that otherwise finds Rascal evolving. His social consciousness remains intact on "World Outside" as he yearns to escape the 'hood, and his delivery is clearer and bolder than before. So is his music: Live drums and grinding metal guitar propel "Sirens" - maybe the catchiest song he's ever recorded - and he rides a hard, funky bass line on "Excuse Me Please."

Rascal shows better judgment with the other cameos. Lily Allen sings, in pixieish tones, the hook on "Wanna Be," while a sample of Arctic Monkeys front man Alex Turner changes the lyrical pace on the jittery "Temptation" with a relaxed melody that contrasts with Rascal's rapid-fire rhymes.

The Roots, by contrast, are a vision of what American hip-hop could be.

The standard-bearers of socially and politically conscious rap have long shrugged off such labels, until now: "Rising Down" is more political than the rest of the Philadelphia group's albums combined, says drummer Ahmir "?uestlove" Thompson.

Over tight boom-bap rhythm and comparatively lush melodic accompaniment, Roots MC Black Thought and various guests, including Talib Kweli and Common, rhyme about a host of social ills. On "I Will Not Apologize," the group decries hip-hop stereotypes that have been extended by pop culture and the media to black America as a whole. The theme recurs on "75 Bars (Black's Reconstruction)" and on the smooth, propulsive funk jam "Criminal," where Black Thought draws a pointed contrast between the respective penalties for political crimes and street-level thuggery.

It's a gruff, sometimes paranoid album with a decidedly subjective point of view, but "Rising Down" cuts no corners as its tells some hard truths to a society that is only too happy to stay in the dark.

Essential download: "Sirens" by Dizzee Rascal; "Criminal" by the Roots